The Hunger Games: Gale Edition
by babyscriibble
Summary: When Prim's name was pulled from the draw, Katniss Everdeen volunteered as tribute. When Peeta Mellark's name was pulled out of the draw, Gale Hawthorne volunteered as tribute. Wait, was that was happened? Gale, in a last attempt for save the one he loves (even at the cost of his life), enters the Hunger Games.
1. Chapter 1

The Hunger Games: The Gale Edition

Chapter One  
 **Gale**

Effy picked out a name from the girls' ball. Even from where I sat, I could see Katniss praying for Prim. It was Prim's first year, her name only written once.  
You had to be twelve to be in the Hunger Games, every year, twenty-four (a boy and girl from each of the twelve districts) teenagers, between twelve and eighteen, had to fight to their deaths, for the amusement of the Capitol. District Twelve (the one Katniss and I live in) never win. There has been one winner out of the whole seventy-four years that the Hunger Games has happened from District 12.  
Each year, you have to put in at least one more. If you put in extra when you didn't need to, like Katniss and I did, then you trade it for goods.  
"From the girls' ball...Primrose Everdeen!" boomed Effy. Those in the front rows covered their ears. "Come on quickly Primrose. Unless anyone volunteers?"  
"I volunteer," Katniss said bravely, stepping into the middle, between the two rows.  
"And you are?" Effy asked, clearly baffled.  
"Katniss Ever seen," Katniss could hardly finish her name before Prim started screaming and crying.  
"Noo! Katniss! No, you can't!" Prim screamed.  
"Excuse me! And who are you to scream like that?" Effy exclaimed, annoyed.  
"I am Primrose Everdeen, my sister cannot do the Hunger Games," Prim, in her devastation was confident.  
"You cannot control this, you are just a small little girl," Effy snapped.  
As Katniss walked towards the small but important stage, she must have heard us sobbing, her family, my family. I think she had a death wish. Her mum and Prim were telling her to come back, to not go into that, she probably wouldn't come back alive. I decided right then that whoever the boy was that was picked, I would volunteer for them, to protect Katniss. I needed to keep her alive for her family and me.  
"And from the boys ball...Peeta Mellark!" Effy yelled, just as loudly as before.  
"I volunteer!" I shouted. Stepping out of that row was one of the scariest things I had ever done in my entire life.  
"Gale! No!" Mum cried.  
"Who are you?" Effy asked suspiciously.  
"Gale," I replied.  
"Why Gale? Why?" Mum screamed.  
"This is ridiculous! I can understand Katniss but why you?" Effy demanded.  
"I'm in love with Katniss," I replied.

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 **Katniss**

I was dumbstruck, if what Gale had just said was true, how did I not notice? He had no reason to lie, and on TV?  
Gale came up on stage. Why could he not have stayed at home to look after our families. Both our fathers died in the mine, it collapsed and he died. I can remember that day so clearly. All the miners' children and wives were called to the scene. We were waiting there for hours, waiting, waiting for Dad to come out, surrounded all around by happy voices. Then, we were told that there was no more alive men. I remember trying to comfort Prim and Mother. I decided then that I would take up the hunting that Father always used to do.  
Ever since then, I had hunted for meat for my family, selling anything that we didn't need. The peacekeepers we had were reasonably nice, they even bought the meat I sold. The woods was were I met Gale. We became friends, shared weapons and traps, even shared there food. To start with though, it was a thing about gaining trust.  
And now, we're both going to die together, never see our families or each other again. Ever.

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This is my first Hunger Games story, I hope you like it!

Becca :)


	2. Chapter 2

The Hunger Games: Gale Edition

Chapter Two

Gale

Later that day, Katniss and I had to say our final goodbyes. To my surprise, Peeta Mellark walked in.

"Thanks for volunteering. Good luck," he muttered gruffly. "Protect her, yeah?"

I was surprised. Was Peeta Mellark in love with Katniss?

On the train Katniss and I didn't meet Haymitch. When we got to the Capitol, we finally met him.

Sitting at the table in the dining room, Haymitch walked in when we were halfway through our meal.

"Am I late?" he asked, smirking.

I don't know why, but immediately I felt myself warming too him. Katniss on the other hand, didn't. She fell out with him straight away.

"Just relax, it will be a blast. Stay out of the way of others-especially the Careers. Then at the end, both of you will be winners. I'm sure-" Haymitch began.

"Relax?! Relax?! How can we relax? We are going into The Hunger Games, where we will more than likely die !" Katniss pushed back her chair with a screech and stormed off.

I ran after her. She wasn't in her room. Only then did I notice the long metal ladder, leading up to the sky, or so it looked like, at the top I could just see the daylight.

I climbed up the ladder, onto what I thought must be the roof. Katniss was sitting on the hard concrete floor, staring at the view.

I gasped.

The view was astounding, you could see the whole city. This building must be right in the middle of the city. The narrow dusty road that led into the city looked so small that I almost laughed. I must have been stranding there for ages because suddenly it was dark. The bright lights of the city lit up the sky. The stars could hardly be seen, unlike in District Twelve. The stars there were so bright. I realised I was walking towards the edge when an incredible force shoved me back. A force field.

"It hurts doesn't it? It must be to stop tributes from killing themselves," Katniss looked up at me. "Do you really love me?"

"Yes, I do," I replied.

"When did you realise?" she asked.

"When I first met you, pretty much," I answered honestly.

"Why didn't you tell me?" she asked.

"I didn't want to scare you off," I replied.

"I wouldn't have been!" she exclaimed.

I thought differently. To her, I was a friend , not a boyfriend.

Why was this so messed up. I would die in the Hunger Games, Peeta would get what he wanted, Katniss would fall in love with Peeta, marry him, have kids. Meanwhile I would be dead, my body somewhere in the Capitol.

* * *

Prim

I missed Katniss. Mum was just sitting on the chair, staring at the TV, even when it wasn't on, which was practically never. We were starving, we had milk from Lady, my goat and some water, but that's it. If neither Katniss nor Gale survive then I would have to put my name in the ball again and again and again. Tesserae. At least then Mum and I wouldn't starve. I thought that one of them would come out alive. Gale was trying to protect Katniss when he volunteered for Peeta Mellark, I don't tink Gale even knew who he was.


	3. Chapter 3

_None of the characters in this story belong to me, all belong to the author of The Hunger Games, Suzanne Collins._

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The Hunger Games: The Gale Edition

Chapter Three

Gale

I was still in a sour mood after I left for bed. I wanted to cry but the last time I cried was when my father died in the mine explosion when I was thirteen. Katniss was eleven. So I couldn't cry, not after not crying for five years.

I also didn't want to look like I had been crying in the morning, with red, puffy eyes. That was not the way to make Katniss love me. She would think I was weak and pathetic, not strong and tough like she thought I was.

The next morning, I was still in a sour mood.

"Why are you in such a bad mood?" Haymitch asked as I stormed into the room.

Haymitch I were the only ones in the room. Good. I don't want Katniss to know that I'm planning to protect her in the Hunger Games. Effy hadn't attempted to get me up with "Up up up! It's going to be a big big big day! "

"Katniss and I are both going to go into the Hunger Games. I don't know if you heard, considering you were drunk and fell off the stage, but I'm-" I hesitated, unsure of why I was telling him this. "In love with her. Only one of us can come out alive- her- and Peeta Mellark is also in love with her, when she gets back from the Hunger Games, she will fall in love with Peeta, a reasonably well off guy, while my dead body is in the Capitol. And even if I hadn't gone into the Hunger Games, and Peeta had gone in, she wouldn't have fallen in love with me, a boy from the Seam, when she was rich and lived in the Winner's Houses! She would fall in love with some rich- or as rich as you can get in District Twelve! "

Effy came in. "Oh! There you are! I was beginning to think you'd ran away! "

Katniss rushed over to hug me. "Effy told me you were missing! I thought you'd ran away and maybe the Capitol had found you! "

"It's okay Catnip," I used my old nickname for her, one I hadn't used since we before the Reaping.

Katniss

When Effy came in my room that first day at the training centre, looking panicked, I demanded to know what was wrong, not sure if she would tell me. When she told me Gale was missing, I asked her if she'd checked the dining room where we had the hot chocolate for the first time, I tried dipping my bread in, curious to see if it tasted good. It did. I hoped that there was more on offer this morning. And every mealtime until we went into the arena. I suppressed a shudder at the thought of going into the arena. It was better me than Prim. She should live a little and besides, she was more use than I was, she could save others' lives. I couldn't. I was squeamish at the sight of blood.

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	4. Chapter 4

The Hunger Games: The Gale Edition

Chapter Four

 **Gale**

That day we had to go to the training centre.

"Are either of you especially good at anything?" Haymitch asked at breakfast.

"No," Katniss replied defiantly.

"Katniss is," I said.

"No, I'm not!" Katniss exclaimed.

"Yeah, she's good at archery," I explained.

"Well, so are you!" she yelled.

"If you are, don't go to that station in the training centre, keep to things you don't know how to do. That way the other contestants won't see your skills. Go tie knots or something," Haymitch advised.

She stormed out. I don't know why she got annoyed when I told Haymitch that she was good at archery.

As I ate my breakfast, I decided that I would have to develop another skill, I couldn't use archery because there would probably only be one bow and arrow, and Katniss would need it. She needed it for food, for saving her life. I'm not saying she couldn't throw a knife if she put her mind to it, but she's just amazing at archery. I decided to learn how to throw knives.

When we got to the training centre, all the other tributes where there. Although Effie made sure we were a little early, everyone else was earlier. We had to wait a few minutes until exactly 10.00am before the lady began to speak.

As the lady told us what to do, my eyes wandered around the room. All of the tributes had labels on their backs saying what district they were from. I put my hand on my back. I had a label too. Someone must have put it there when I walked in the room. I shifted slightly to stand behind Katniss. She had a label as well. When the lady finished speaking after what felt like forever, Katniss and I headed for knot tying. Katniss had a talent for tying knots. Within a few minutes, she had learnt how to set a trap for animals- or for the other tributes, I'd have to watch my step around her in the arena, otherwise I would end up hanging by my feet upside down.

* * *

 **Katniss**

Gale wasn't very good at tying knots, I thought he should have been because, after all, we did go hunting on a daily basis and we sometimes set snares.

I hate the thought of going into the arena but I had to, for Prim. I guess Gale volunteered for me, to protect me, or some rubbish like that. I don't need protecting! I could have sworn that if he tried to protect me in the arena, I would set a trap to swing him into mid air. We were both going to end up dead if he insisted upon 'saving'if he insisted upon 'saving' me- and it should only be me who died. He needed to go home to protect both of our families- they wouldn't survive without him when he should have been alive, hunting for both our families. If he loved me that much, he would've stayed at homer, looking after Prim and my mother. He knows I care about them more than my own life.

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